Herald Staff reports



The 2008 season began in earnest Friday night for several local squads as they began District 10 region action.

Sharon looked impressive in a 41-0 victory over Reynolds. In other action it was: West Middlesex beat Mercyhurst Prep, 27-19; Kennedy Catholic fell at Linesville, 35-0; Lakeview defeated Conneaut Valley, 30-14; and Brookfield suffered a tough 29-27 loss at Jefferson Area.

ä Sharon 41, Reynolds 0 — Sometimes when a team is as dominating as the Tigers were in their home opener, a coach actually has to search to find some faults.

“A little too many penalties,” said Sharon coach Bob Fromm, shortly after accepting kisses from family members.

While the Tigers did have 5 penalties, a number that some coaches would actually celebrate, there was little else they did wrong in the Region 3-AA opener. Coming after the emotional win over Farrell the week before, it did bring praise from the Tigers mentor.

“We talked about it all week (not having a letdown after playing rival Farrell),” said Fromm. “We told the kids you have to be ready to play football each and every week. We said we wanted to start well in the league. The kids prepared themselves well.”

Fromm was extremely pleased with the performance of quarterback Todd Rearick, who hit on 9 of 13 passes for 147 yards and 3 touchdowns, while also running for 59 yards.

“We had to sharpen up some things in the passing game, we needed to get back to basics. Rearick was a little rusty starting the year (in the Farrell game), but he and Mike (Tomko) were on the same page tonight.

“Defensively, the kids got off the ball well. We try to rotate kids so they stay fresh.”

Sharon vaulted to a 35-0 lead before halftime to evoke the “Mercy Rule.” In that half, Rearick hit TD scores of 10 yards to Ron Howard, 46 to Dustin Norcross and 16 to Lewis Brown. Rearick also scored on a 2-yard run and Howard tallied on a 7-yard burst. Terry Flaugher was 5-for-5 booting PATs.

The Tigers were so dominating on both sides of the ball in the opening half that they rolled up 226 yards while holding the Raiders to 28.

With the clocking running throughout the final two quarters, the only other Sharon score came when Tomko ran 16 yards on a reverse.

“It was a good performance,” praised Fromm. “But the kids know the drill. We still have a lot of things we can do better and some things to work on.”

Yeah, like cutting down on those 5 penalties!

Notes: Donnie Flynn, who suffered a concussion in last week’s opener and is probably done for the year, was still an emotional leader for the Tigers and served as a captain for midfield meetings at the game start and halftime. ... Rearick’s 3 incompletions included one to stop the clock shortly before half, then a short time later he hooked up with Brown on the 16-yard score with only 6.8 seconds remaining ... That touchdown was set up by an interception by Tiger Justin Norcross with less that a minute remaining at the Reynolds 28. ... Cameron Brown recovered a fumble for Sharon, while Will Ringer did the same for the Raiders (0-1, 0-2). — By Lynn Saternow, Herald Sports Editor.

ä West Middlesex 27, Mercyhurst Prep 19 — At West Middlesex, Kyle Allen rushed for 206 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns as the Big Reds (2-0) posted a thrilling non-region win over Prep (0-2), the defending District 10 champs.

Prep went up 9-0 in the 1st quarter following a safety and a 40-yard TD pass from Marshall Huntsman to Zach Miller. Ryan Cammidge added the PAT.

The Big Reds rallied to take a 13-9 lead after the 1st quarter on a 59-yard run by Mark Saylor and a 1-yard run by Allen. Ryan Chupak went 1-of-2 in PATs.

MP cut the lead to 13-12 in the 2nd quarter on a 30-yard field goal by Cammidge, then went up 19-13 following a 7-yard TD run by Robert Carson and a Cammidge PAT.

The Big Reds came back and took a 20-19 lead on a 1-yard TD run by Nate Ash and Chupak’s extra-point. The final score came on a 67-yard run by Allen, and Chupak added the PAT for a 27-19 advantage.

Both teams were held scoreless during the 2nd half.

ä Lakeview 30, Conneaut Lake 14 — At Conneautville, the visiting Sailors coasted to the Region 1 win by traversing for 366 rushing yards.

Chad Blair’s 30-carry, 156-yard rushing effort, complemented by Jordan Damko’s 10-tote, 113-yard, 3-TD outing led Lakeview (1-0, 1-1), which attempted just 1 pass and fumbled 7 times, losing 4.

Following a scoreless 1st frame the teams were tied at 6 at intermission, before the Sailors scored 18 third-period points on Blair’s 11-yard run, Damko’s 90-yard dash, and another from Jake Novak from 20 yards out. Novak notched another 85 yards rushing for Sailors’ skipper Dan York.

Mike Leonard led Valley (0-1, 0-2) with an 11-carry, 94-yard rushing performance, including a 77-yard, 2nd-stanza scoring sprint, and Casey Baker posted an 8-for-21, 106-yard passing performance, but had 3 of his passes picked off.

ä Jefferson 29, Brookfield 27 (OT) — At Jefferson, the host Falcons flew to their 1st win on the arm and legs of Johnny Namey.

Namey notched 188 yards passing, tossing TDs of 80 and 24 yards to Connor Cleveland, and he rushed 8 yards in overtime for the Falcons’ score. Josh Simon’s 2-point run proved pivotal, as Matt Palumbo answered for Brookfield with a 1-yard plunge in OT, but the Warriors’ game-tying 2-point attempt failed.

Mack O’Brien overwhelmed Jefferson with a 28-carry, 203-yard rushing performance that included 17- and 8-yard scoring sprints, and he also caught 3 Palumbo passes for another 25 yards, kicked a PAT and rushed for another.

Brookfield (0-3) boasted 354 total yards and 18 first downs, while Jefferson jolted the Warriors’ defense for an evenly balanced 370 yards (182 rushing, 188 passing). Simon secured 136 yards rushing on 18 totes.

Jefferson (1-2) jumped to a 21-7 margin at intermission on a pair of Namey-to-Cleveland connections, sandwiching Simon’s 1-yard plunge, but Brookfield bested the 2nd half scoring as O’Brien and Palumbo produced 3rd- and 4th-quarter TD runs from 8 and 1 yard out.

In addition to O’Brien and Palumbo, who passed for 41 yards on a 4-of-5 performance and rushed for another 98 markers on 26 carries, Taylor Brooks boasted 9 tackles and picked off a pair of passes.

ä Linesville 35, Kennedy Catholic 0 — At Linesville, the Lions rolled to a 27-0 first-quarter lead, then a 35-0 margin at intermission and coasted under the mercy rule during the 2nd half.

Linesville (1-0 Region 1-A, 2-0 overall) scored 2 touchdowns off fumble returns, one of 40 yards by Matt Laird and the other of 35 yards by Evan Smith. Walter Litwin scored a pair of touchdowns on 39- and 38-yard aerials from Trevor Litwiler. The other touchdown came on a James Kearns 31-yard run.

The Golden Eagles fell to 0-1 in the region and 0-2 overall after being shut out for a 2nd straight week. Marlon Davis, who rushed for 109 yards in Kennedy’s opening-game loss, did not carry the ball against Linesville.

———

BOXES

REYNOLDS 0 0 0 0 0

SHARON 7 28 6 0 41

Scoring plays

S — Rearick, 2 run (Flaugher kick)

S — Howard, 7 run (Flaugher kick)

S — Howard, 10 pass from Rearick (Flaugher kick)

S — D. Norcross, 46 pass from Rearick (Flaugher kick)

S — L. Brown, 16 pass from Rearick (Flaugher kick)

S — M. Tomko, 16 run (kick failed)

Team stats

REYNOLDS SHARON

6 First downs 16

91 Rushing yards 203

0 Passing yards 172

2-0-0 Att-comp-int 14-10-0

91 Total yards 375

1-1 Fumbles-lost 1-1

3-20 Penalties-yards lost 5-40

Individual stats

Rushing: REYNOLDS — Farina 16-34, Murray 6-33, Kirk 6-32, Wolfe 4-(-5), Fowler 1-(-4), Baptiste 1-1, Rhodes 1-0, Henley 2-0; SHARON — Rearick 7-59, Howard 5-47, L. Brown 1-23, K. Brown 2-15, Tomko 1-16, King 4-28, Moss 1-0, Hosey 1-9, Dixon 1-3, Jenkins 1-(-3), Harrison 2-6.

Passing: REYNOLDS — Wolfe 2-0-1, 0; SHARON — Rearick 13-9-0, 147, King 1-1-0, 25.

Receiving: REYNOLDS — N/A; SHARON — Howard 4-52, Tomko 2-23, Moss 2-35, D. Norcross 1-46, L. Brown 1-16.

———

MERCY.PREP 9 10 0 0 19

W.MIDDLESEX 13 14 0 0 27

Scoring plays

MP — team safety

MP — Miller, 40 pass from Hunstman (Cammidge kick)

WM — Saylor, 59 run (Chupak kick)

WM — Allen, 1 run (kick failed)

MP — Cammidge 30 field goal

MP — Carson, 7 run (Cammidge kick)

WM — Ash, 1 run (Chupak kick)

WM — Allen, 67 run (Chupak kick)

Team stats

PREP MIDDLESEX

7 First downs 21

138 Rushing yards 409

83 Passing yards 22

12-6-1 Att-comp-int 5-2-1

221 Total yards 431

2-1 Fumbles-lost 1-1

1-5 Penalties-yards lost 4-35

Individual stats

Rushing: MERCYHURST PREP — Carson 15-102, Kurzik 3-17, Hesch 4-15, Corovano 3-5, Huntsman 1-(-1); WEST MIDDLESEX — Allen 26-206, Saylor 6-92, Ash 16-58, Wimer 5-30, Mihalcak 4-23.

Passing: MERCYHURST PREP — Huntsman 12-6-1, 83; WEST MIDDLESEX — Wimer 5-2-1, 22.

Receiving: MERCYHURST PREP — Miller 1-40, Carson 3-25, Brandt 1-10, Corovano 1-8; WEST MIDDLESEX — Saylor 1-7, Ash 1-7.

———

LAKEVIEW 0 6 18 6 30

CONN.VALLEY 0 6 0 8 14

Scoring plays

CV — Leonard, 77 run (run failed)

L — Damko, 11 run (pass failed)

L — Blair, 11 run (run failed)

L — Damko, 90 run (run failed)

L — Novak, 20 run (run failed)

CV — Hyde, 1 run (Baker run)

L — Damko 18 run (kick failed)

Team stats

LAKEVIEW CONN.VALLEY

15 First downs 5

366 Rushing yards 106

0 Passing yards 61

1-0-0 Att-comp-int 21-8-3

366 Total yards 167

7-4 Fumbles-lost 1-1

6-37 Penalties-yards lost 4-20

Individual stats

Rushing: LAKEVIEW — Blair 30-156, Damko 10-113, Novak 12-85, Milliren 2-1; CONNEAUT VALLEY — Leonard 11-94, Butterfield 7-24, Hyde 3-3, Baker 8-(-2), Welker 3-(3-).

Passing: LAKEVIEW — Damko 1-0-0; CONNEAUT VALLEY — Baker 20-7-3, 68; Hyde 1-1-0, 7.

Receiving: CONNEAUT VALLEY — Welker 4-52, Walters 2-17, Baker 1--(-7), Hyde 1-(-1).

———

KENNEDY 0 0 0 0 0

LINESVILLE 27 8 0 0 35

Scoring plays

L — Laird, 40 fum. ret (kick fail)

L — Litwin, 39 pass from Litwiler (Litwiler run)

L — Kearns, 31 run (kick fail)

L — Smith, 35 fumble return (Litwiler kick)

L — Litwin, 38 pass from Litwiler (Laird pass from Litwilder)

Team stats

KENNEDY LINESVILLE

N/A First downs N/A

53 Rushing yards 174

0 Passing yards 163

6-0-2 Att-comp-int 10-7-0

53 Total yards 337

N/A Fumbles-lost N/A

N/A Penalties-yards lost N/A

Individual stats

Rushing: KENNEDY CATHOLIC — Luce 11-33, Leipheimer 4-12, Ellebie 4-12, D’Onofrio 4-(-4); LINESVILLE — Farley 14-88, Kearns 15-73, Litwiler 3-7, Gaetano 2-6.

Passing: KENNEDY CATHOLIC — D’Onofrio 5-0-2-0, Baker 1-0-0-0; LINESVILLE — Litwiler 10-7-0-163.

Receiving: KENNEDY CATHOLIC — N/A; LINESVILLE — Litwin 3-96, Laird 3-51, Smith 1-16.

———

BROOKFIELD 0 7 6 8 6 27

JEFFERSON 7 14 0 0 8 29

Scoring plays

J — Cleveland, 80 pass from Namey

J — Simon, 1 run (kick failed)

B — O’Brien, 17 run (O’Brien kick)

J — Cleveland, 24 pass from Namey (PAT kick)

B — O’Brien, 8 run (kick failed)

B — Palumbo, 1 run (O’Brien run)

J — Namey, 8 run (Simon run)

B — Palumbo, 1 run (run failed)

Team stats

BROOKFIELD JEFFERSON

18 First downs 7

313 Rushing yards 182

41 Passing yards 188

5-4-0 Att-comp-int 11-5-2

354 Total yards 370

N/A Fumbles-lost N/A

4-35 Penalties-yards lost 4-25

Individual stats

Rushing: BROOKFIELD — O’Brien 28-203, Palumbo 26-98, Sulick 3-12; JEFFERSON — Simon 18-136, Namey 8-16, Hass 3-7, Hommes 3-6, Byler 1-15, Tyus 2-4, Cleveland 1-(-2).

Passing: BROOKFIELD — Palumbo 5-4-0, 41; JEFFERSON — Namey 11-5-2, 188.

Receiving: BROOKFIELD — O’Brien 3-25, Shaw 1-16; JEFFERSON — Cleveland 3-118, Byler 1-42, Moyer 1-28.